


The Lost Boy

by strawbebbie



Category: The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Hybrids, Magic, Originals - Freeform, Other, Supernatural - Freeform, The Originals - Freeform, Vampires, Werewolves, Witches, siphons, the vampire diaries - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-07
Updated: 2017-04-06
Packaged: 2018-10-15 21:44:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10558186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawbebbie/pseuds/strawbebbie
Summary: Austin Stevens comes to the town of New Orleans after living on the streets for two years, found and saved by none other than Kendra Hart herself. She takes him under her wing and adopts him, bringing him into her already perfect little family and showing him the side of the supernatural world he thought only existed in movies and television shows. He struggles to cope at first while simultaneously meeting those who become some of the most important people in his life.





	1. Chapter One

Austin Stevens took a drag on his cigarette in the middle of downtown New York City, breathing in deep as the smoke filled his lungs and he let the smoke go into the cold, winter air. His denim, fleece lined jacket didn't belong to him, in fact he wasn't sure where he had picked it up, probably off the floor of the many apartment and house bedroom floors he had slept on over the last few weeks. He couldn't even remember his name but he was probably just another one night stand, he rarely stayed with the same person more than once. He fled the house with something warm to wear before also stealing his pack of cigarettes and stuffing them in the pockets.

He had lost all care in the world for his current state in life, he was lucky he was getting by day by day acting the way he was and living the way he was. Sure, sleeping with people just to have a warm place to sleep at night wasn't so bad when he wasn't freezing to death in the winter, but he also didn't have anyone who actually loved him. He had kind of lost all hope that he would ever have a normal life ever again. He didn't have a home, he didn't have a family that cared about him and loved him and he was sure he was going to die alone anyway. Not that he minded but he hoped at least someone here and there remembered him for the good person he was and not as the monster his father made him out to be. 

He looked across the street and spotted someone walking down the street in heels, a long black coat with a dress underneath, and a rather expensive looking purse over her arm. Her brown hair trailed behind her in the wind and he wondered how she wasn't freezing just wearing a dress in the dead of winter. It was the middle of January and New York wasn't exactly known for it's high temperatures this early in the year. She didn't even look bothered by the cold as she kept walking down the street which made Austin roll his eyes. He dropped his half smoked cigarette on the ground and stomped on it with his boot before slowly walking towards her. 

She seemed distracted, looking at her phone and looking down at the sidewalk in front of her, something Austin knew to be quite dangerous to do in the middle of such a big city, you would think she would know better if she knew anything about the city she was walking in. But this wasn't Austin's first time in New York City, he knew how to be sneaky and pick the pockets of hundreds of people here, most which hadn't had a clue they had lost a hundred dollars here or there and he had walked away with lunch money for the week. He had learned to be stealthy and quick about it so no one would ever know it was him or that their money was missing. He grew up here, watching people be careless with their belongings and some were even dumb enough to set things down to tie their shoes or adjust their coats which brought on every opportunity to snatch it right under their noses. 

He picked up his pace and walked closer to her, spotting that the bag she was carrying had an easy opening for him to slip a hand in and grab for her wallet. If he was quick enough he could grab the wallet, grab for any cash she had inside and put the wallet back without her even knowing. Her nose was buried in her phone, he had no doubt she wouldn't have a clue. He got as close as he could within arms length that he could reach into the purse, but before he even had the chance he felt himself moving so fast he didn't even have time to blink. 

He was pushed up against the side of the wall in the next alley, the back of his head hurting and he was closing his eyes shut tight thinking he was about to die. If she had it her way, she probably would have killed him on the spot, but Kendra Hart usually gave people the benefit of the doubt before letting them off that easy. 

"What are you doing? Who are you?" She asked harshly, no kindness in her voice as her blue eyes stared into his, almost like piercing daggers. He had to look away from her but at the same time couldn't help but stare. He felt as if his soul had left his body momentarily at the sheer force behind her pinning him at the wall. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out which seemed to make her impatient. "I asked you a question." She said again. 

"Austin- my name's Austin Stevens. I-I was going to take your wallet." Austin spoke up, feeling stupid and realizing how weird it sounded out loud. He didn't look homeless by the looks of him, he looked clean shaven, he had on a relatively new looking jacket that he still didn't know where it came from, but he only had about five dollars to his name right now which was the whole reason why he had been looking for something to steal. 

The brunettes eyes focused on his and for a moment she thought about compelling him and making him go away, and her mind wandered to how bad would this really look if she killed him right here and left him. She didn't do that anymore so she figured she might as well try to hear him out. 

"Why were you trying to steal my wallet?" She asked, beginning to loosen his grip on him but fearful he would try to run before having the chance to clear his memory. 

"Isn't it obvious? You're strutting around the streets of New York City with a Chanel bag on your arm, a dress with no pants and heels and honestly you kind of stick out like a sore thumb. How the fuck are you not cold?" He asked quickly, still fearing for his life but with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. 

"You really think I have the money for a Chanel bag? You really know how to read a person don't you," She huffed and rolled her eyes, finally loosening her grip. Austin really wasn't sure where she was going with his but he almost felt like he should run before she did decide he was better off dead. "It's not a Chanel bag by the way. It's a knock off. I own a coffee shop, we don't get Chanel bags." Kendra joked with a thin line of a smile. 

Austin raised his eyebrows at her and studied her face, trying to catch his breath after she left go over the neck cuff of his shirt. He cleared his throat and looked around, there was no gang of people waiting with knives, it was just the two of them in an alley of NYC. "Are you going to kill me?" He asked morbidly, watching her raise an eyebrow at him and chuckle lightly. He could tell she was powerful, how else would they have gotten into the alley in just a matter of seconds after standing out on the street. 

"You? You're scrawny and you're just a kid, why don't you just go home and ask mommy and daddy for an allowance?" Kendra snapped at him watching his face fall. His face didn't change and he didn't move, she started to put two and two together which really wasn't that hard to do. Kendra was also an orphan, her parents had been killed when she was only six years old. She could still remember their screams and cries before their voices were never heard again. Her mother's voice was a different story, that one she did hear a few times since, but that was a long time ago and her mother was dead and gone. "I'm sorry, I didn't know." Kendra replied, even though the words were never exchanged between them Austin could only nod. 

"You don't have to apologize. It's not like you know me, we didn't sit down and have a cup of coffee and I just left that part out of my life story or anything." If Austin was good at anything it was sarcasm and cynicism. "I don't have a family anymore, it's nothing to get all worked up about." 

But Austin had gotten worked up about it, he had missed his family, or at least parts of his family, terribly ever since he had gotten kicked out. He had been living on the streets for two years, learning to survive and learning to put aside personal feelings for survival even if those feelings had gotten the better of him sometimes and had almost gotten him killed. 

Kendra couldn't help but feel bad, and it wasn't her feeling bad like she wanted to pity him. "I understand that, I lost my family too. A very long time ago but it still hurts a lot. They were murdered right in front of me- well, I wouldn't say right in front of me. My mom had me go up to my room because she knew what was about to happen and she didn't want me to have to see it. Frankly, I barely remember what I saw but there was blood everywhere when Klaus rushed me out of the house." Kendra was saying names Austin had no idea about and hopefully would never know if they were as bad as they sounded. 

"Who's Klaus?" Austin asked, nosy which caught Kendra off guard. She didn't expect him to ask or even care about her or anything she had to say, she did just try to kill him after all. "And why would you remember your parent's killers? Did he try to hurt you?" He wasn't sure why he was asking, he didn't even know this person. 

"He tried to kill me as well, multiple times actually. I'm surprised he didn't just take the ring before and leave me for dead just like my parents. I think he always knew he couldn't get the ring to work without me." Kendra had a somber look on her face as she looked past him trying to figure out how much of this to share. She was usually a very open person and could tell stories to those who didn't even care. She didn't mind if no one else got anything out of it, her favorite past time was venting to those who would at least listen. 

"It's all over now though. We've have an agreement for many years now and we've both stuck to it-"

"Wait, are you meaning to tell me you're friends with your potential killer? The same person who killed your parents?" Austin looked taken aback and shocked, knowing her or not he couldn't believe what he was hearing. 

"I never said we were friends." Kendra said sternly, staring into Austin's eyes. She could forget this whole thing here and now and leave him to do whatever he planned on doing before she came along, but in a way she couldn't help but pity him, especially when he was going to make assumptions. "My best friend fell in love with him. Not that I quite understood at first, as we discussed he was the same person who murdered my family. But when he saved mine and my wife's life I tried to keep an open mind. I even forgave him a little bit, but we're not friends." 

As soon as she said the word 'wife' Austin was all ears. He'd met gay people, he'd met people who were from all different kinds of backgrounds and ethnicity's, races, religions, he was familiar with the different melting pots just within the small confines of his hometown. New York was a big place, he was bound to meet just about anyone. "You said wife," Austin said softly. 

"Did I? Her name is Allison. She's Russian, and you'll be able to tell when you meet her of course. She's the light of my life in this dark and painful world and she's the love of my life." Kendra said, a faint smile appearing on her face and her blue eyes lighting up. 

"When I meet her?" Austin shot back, bewildered and almost hoping she had misspoke. "How do you expect me to trust you? I only just met you, how do I know you're not going to like take me back to your apartment or hotel and just murder me there instead of on a dirty street? What are you anyway? Like a hit-man? Hit... Woman?" His expression was priceless, he looked as if he were going to faint any second. 

"Neither, actually." Kendra said winking at him, a joke reserved for only herself and a select few. "And I'm not a spy or a murderer, though that is in my past a little bit." Kendra said darkly, approaching him more which scared him, causing him to back up against the wall again, his back becoming damp from the wet bricks. "I'm a vampire. Well, witch-vampire. It's a long story I don't really have time to tell right now. Do you really think I would leave you to starve and survive on the street, so are you coming or not?" 

She could have walked away, her past self, the self without humanity probably would have. But his face reminded her of herself from when she was just a teenager struggling to make do on the streets. Elijah had come along and saved her life, had taken her in and never batted an eyelash to the fact that she was human and he was not. 

Austin didn't know what to say. She looked like she was itching to get out of here, as if she didn't spend all her free time in damp, dark alley's in the middle of New York City. "Are you serious? You don't know me at all. I could be a killer myself. I could get you alone with me and kill you myself." Even though it wasn't true, she scared him way more than even the smallest of pests and bugs. He'd never been more scared of a person in his life, excluding his own father. 

He looked around and saw no sight of danger, even though there was a feeling in the pit of his stomach telling him not to go. But the other voice in his head was telling him this could be his shot at survival, a second chance, and he wasn't willing to let that go. Austin nodded gently and pursed his lips, following Kendra out of the alley and back onto the pavement like he was following a friend home. 


	2. Chapter Two

The journey from New York down to New Orleans didn't take long, Kendra quickly forked over around six-hundred dollars just to fly them back home even though he wasn’t sure what would be waiting for him when they landed. Austin had never been on a plane before because his parents never took them on vacations outside of the New England area. All of their trips were in driving distance and he longed to see the world. They sat in silence for much of the flight until he plucked up the courage to speak to her. They talked and gotten to know each other in the very short time they had and he was taken aback by how kind she actually seemed. Not that he doubted her, but it wasn’t every day he got to meet a blood-thirsty vampire, hours ago he assumed they only existed in story books.

After convincing him to talk to her Kendra had also found out that Austin's family had more or less disowned him for being gay. That wasn't exactly something Kendra could relate to, she didn't realize she was gay until much later in life, but life had still been difficult because of it. She was shunned by her adoptive family and even kicked out on the streets as well for being different. She could siphon the magic out of things and use them to her own advantage, even though she had no knowledge to what she was even doing. She had a necklace that was given to her by a stranger that she kept close to her heart all these years.

She became powerful and strong and her family became scared of her. Kendra didn't even know what she was at that age, she just knew she had the ability to make things happen without even meaning to. Elijah, the same person who had saved her life, also later told her that without her vampirism she would have never been able to practice magic naturally like any other witch. She didn't have any power of her own, not that it had ever fazed her, she didn't even know she could possess magic or that her parents had been witches in the first place. They coveted a very powerful piece of jewelry, the Hart Ring, used to bring back the dead of any loved one, but it had gone horribly wrong in the hands of the wrong person, Kendra herself. 

Austin had only been a teenager when he realized his fate, hiding it for years from his parents who were radical Christians who were not accepting of gay people. He knew those who were and they were his safe haven growing up, even his mother knew and kept him as safe as possible. "I'm pretty sure my dad killed my brother for the same thing." Austin had said somberly during their conversation on the plane. Speaking of Hayden only made him hate his father that much more, sending chills down his spine that the man was even still alive. "He's supposed to be all for love and acceptance but I've never seen that man accept anything in his life." 

Kendra had done what any compassionate person would do, she listened. She let him talk and vent about the way things were at home and even tried to offer her own piece of advice here and there. "If you stay in my home you won't have to worry about any of that. They won't admit it, but I'm their mother and I'm pretty sure neither of them are straight." Kendra joked causing Austin to snort. 

"What makes you say that?" He asked, amused at her bluntness. "Could you tell with me right away?" 

Austin was still unsure about her, maybe it was the way she constantly read him and took the words right out of his mouth before he even had the chance to say them, but she made him somewhat nervous, and not just because she had almost killed him. She was intelligent and quick to understand people, even if they had never really spoken before. They had known each other less than a day and already he felt like he'd known her for years. 

"The way you carry yourself is much different than anything I've seen before. You remind me of myself from when I was younger. I just had a feeling is all. And I say that because they're my children, you're supposed to know them better than the back of your own hand. I never expected to be a parent, hell, I didn't even want kids. That was a big conversation me and Allison had before we got married about both of our lack of desire to ever have children." She seemed sad and took a deep breath in before continuing. "I can't conceive children, it's a fairly obvious fact considering I'm basically dead. I'm not sure how it goes along with also being a siphon witch in the past but either way, it wasn't even worth trying. As for Allison, she didn't want to carry anyway. She thinks she is cursed with a werewolf gene, cursed or not, it was her decision and I stand by her through anything." 

Austin nodded gently and wondered what it was like to be her, trapped in an immortal life watching everyone else pass you by and out living your loved ones. He couldn’t even imagine staying sixteen forever and watching his parents and his sister die of old age. He didn’t even want to think of a life like that.

When their plane landed and they reached the city, the two of them made their way towards the house. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but what he saw wasn’t even close. It was a light blue two-story house with a halfway, wrap around porch. It was beautiful to say the least and it suited her from what he knew already.

Kendra stood on the Hart-Romanov residence porch pursing her lips and letting out a quiet sigh, hoping Austin, the young man stood beside her wouldn't notice. Her skin was cold and clammy, nervous for what everyone else was going to think. She had forewarned Allison of her plans and even though she was skeptical she gave Kendra the okay to bring him home. 

"You act like you've never done this before." Austin shot at her, his eyebrows lowered and his own skin growing warm with embarrassment. She hadn't killed him thus far and he knew he was foolish to believe that this stranger would really be bringing him into her home to stay. What if inside was a whole pack of vampires waiting to tear his heart out? His mind wandered but he couldn't help but also be thankful that she had saved him. He was mainly just really craving a cigarette right now or a shot of tequila. The flight had been stressful enough, now he had to meet her family and he was almost scared of what they would think of him.

She had two children already, Reagan and Wyatt who were twins adopted out of a foster care home when they were barely two years old. Their mother had killed their father, landing her in prison for life and their father was never actually found dead or alive. And her wife Allison was a full Russian blood werewolf who escaped her home from potential death. 

"I haven't done this before. I don't just go along finding people on the streets to rescue them, funnily enough. This is a one time experience for me." Kendra said with a faint smile. She was taken with him after noticing so much of herself in him, a lonely child on the streets begging for help. He wasn't begging, but he may as well have been. The way he had looked at her made her feel like she could help and actually mean something to him. 

"Funny, I would have thought otherwise. I'm just thankful you didn't kill me." Austin joked, even though there was a hint of seriousness to his voice. Kendra shot him a look, one filled with sadness that brought memories back from her past. A new vampire that was just getting used to the idea of feeding off people for food. The sight of blood made her nauseous, let alone the taste of it made her want to vomit. It didn't sit well with her, and by the time she was almost starving and begging for death itself Elijah had convinced her to just turn off her humanity. To let go of the world of compassion so she could live. She was starved for the taste of blood and craved it at all hours of the day, resulting in the many casualties in villages in the area.

She shook the memory away and sighed heavily before putting her hand on the door knob. "I'm just hopeful my children do not." She replied before pushing the door open. Her reply only made him more anxious and they stepped into the house revealing the landing that lead to the upstairs. The floors were a dark wood that made the house feel warm and cozy inside and the furniture was very modern considering the walls and flooring seemed to be very old and rustic. 

"Are they even home?" Austin asked looking all around the living room that lead into a kitchen area. He could see frames featuring children on the coffee table, both with tawny brown skin and smiles on both of them. The girl's hair was braided down against her head with small hair ties with blue baubles on the end of them. She looked about seven in this picture and next to it was a framed picture of the boy. Reagan and Wyatt were their names from what he could remember, even though this probably wasn't what they looked like now, the girl looked intimidating even though she was just a child in the photo. 

"No, they're both at school. They're thirteen, by the way. I'm not sure if I mentioned that." Kendra said dropping her purse onto the couch and slipping her shoes off and kicking them towards the door. "Make yourself at home. You can turn the TV on if you want, I can make you something to eat, what do you like?" She asked folding her arms over her chest. 

Austin wasn't used to this level of hospitality and was shocked by how willing she was to help out. "Um sure if you don't mind. I don't want to be a bother here."

"Don't. You're my guest here and I'll make you something if you're hungry. When was the last time you had a good meal?" She didn't mean to sound insensitive but she worried she came off that way. She was only relating the situation to her past and how it felt when someone finally took her in. Austin had taken a seat on the couch and was looking at her in awe. How did he get so lucky to end up here? He wasn't sure what he had done to deserve this. 

"Listen, I appreciate all of this- I really do." He said standing to his feet and stuffing his hands into his pockets. "You're great, wonderful even. But I don't know if I can accept all this. You'd really let me stay in your house?" He asked before seeing a woman walking down the stairs clad in all black. Her dark hair flowed down to her chest and her eyes were the most striking blue he'd ever seen. 

"Our house. And please tell me you're not dismissing my wife, or I'll put you back on the streets myself." She snapped sarcastically in a heavy Russian accent. She approached Kendra and wrapped an arm around her waist, placing a small kiss on her cheek. "Hello, darling. How was your trip? I see you brought back a souvenir." Allison joked with a faint smile appearing at her lips when she looked at Austin who was now blushing. "I don't mean to be rude, it's just really funnier that way." 

He let out a deep sigh of relief and felt his anxiety dissipate. This was Allison, Kendra's wife. She didn't let on how intimidating she was though which was a surprise to him. "You're not rude, I'm just not used to all.... This." He gestured to the entire house causing Kendra to chuckle lightly. "You'd really let me stay here?" He said finally, letting go and trying to accept this. 

"Why wouldn't we? Do you really think we'd kick you back out onto the streets?" Kendra looked almost hurt and she loosened Allison's grip on her, approaching Austin. She had brought him back all the way from New York City just to save his life, it saddened her that he wasn't seeing the obvious. "Please hear me when I say this okay? Even if all you do is stay the night and you leave in the morning to do whatever it is you were doing before, give us the benefit of knowing that we could do something to help you."

Her expression was serious but kind, her eyes searching his for any sign that he would accept. He couldn't believe what she was offering, he wouldn't offer this to a stranger in a million years, not one he met off the street. The people who had taken him in were kind strangers, but they were nothing more to him than a one night stand to get out of the cold. Did he feel guilty? Of course he did, but it was the rules of survival. 

These two, Kendra and Allison were people who without a doubt seemed to care about his fate without even knowing or trusting his intentions. He could steal all of their belongings in the middle of the night and leave and never see him again, but they were still willing to help him. 

"I guess it couldn't hurt to stay a few nights." He said finally, searching their faces as smiles appeared and Kendra had to force herself to not embrace him. What she was getting out of this was a mystery to him, but the least he could do was humor both of them. 


	3. Chapter Three

Reagan Hart walked into the house and dropped her bag of books onto the floor, kicked her shoes off by the door and looked around. Something about the house felt a little off and she wasn't sure what it was. She knew if she tried to overthink it it would just end up making her upset, she'd felt off for weeks here and there and it always turned out to be nothing. She wondered where Wyatt was, usually he beat her home, but lately he had been walking home with Esrah Salvatore, their friendship blossoming even more over the last few months even though they'd known each other since they were in diapers. 

She made her way to the kitchen where she heard muffled chattering, all of a sudden a deep voice caught her attention. Men were rarely a presence in this house, not really for any particular reason, but Stefan, Damon, Matt Donovan and Klaus were only invited for special occasion, or if someone was dying. Reagan's eyebrows pulled together when she wandered into the room, noticing her parents sitting at the kitchen table with a young man with dirty blonde hair and a denim jacket. 

They stopped talking as soon as they saw Reagan enter the room, Austin's eyes went wide and he felt like someone had punched him in the chest, funnily enough Reagan felt the same way. He looked a little bit older than her, but not by much. He had a young looking face but he had muscles that almost added a couple years to him. She wasn't very good at guessing ages but something told her he was at least old enough to drive a car. 

"Hi?" Reagan said, hesitation in her voice as she slowly stepped onto the linoleum floor with bare feet. Austin gritted his teeth nervously and he felt like a deer in the headlights. This was their daughter, she didn't look that much different from the picture in the living room. Her hair was more natural now and not pinned down and braided. Her coarse curls went in all directions and it was as dark as night, truth be told it was beautiful. If Reagan prided herself in anything it was her hair. 

"Welcome home, dear." Kendra said with a weak smile, scared of how this encounter might go. She'd been dreading this ever since she made the decision to bring Austin back. She didn't know what was going to come of all this, if she had it her way he would stay a while if he liked it enough, but the idea of her children having to meet him worried it would scare him off. 

Her children were very protective of her and Allison, after having come from almost nothing and a family that was dangerous to them Kendra and Allison were also protective of them. They'd done everything in their power up until now to make sure she and Wyatt were safe from harm, living in a world with so much destruction and pain they never wanted either of them to have to deal with such sorrow. 

They'd told their children from the moment they'd brought them home that they were the best things to ever happen to each other and they were the start of their own little family. For Reagan that meant she never expected to have to compete with someone else for her parent's affection until a strange young man appeared in her childhood home. 

"Who's this?" She asked gently, almost pointed as she began to glare at Austin. He was still sitting in his chair, rigid and his lips pursed in a thin line as if he was worried about slipping and speaking without being asked. Kendra scared him, but the look on this girls face, the one who barely even looked like a teenager, sent chills down his spine. 

Kendra sighed and got up, approaching Reagan who was appearing to become more rigid herself at the presence of a stranger. "This is Austin. He's going to be staying with us for a little bit, is that okay?" She asked, her daughter's head snapping towards her and her skin beginning to burn. "I know it's a sudden change, we don't really know how long he's going to be staying for. I ran into him on the street and he'd been living there for two years and I thought I could be of some help- that we all could. We were hoping you and Wyatt would be getting home at the same time so we could tell you both together but-"

Before she could finish Reagan turned on her heel and headed back in the direction of the staircase leading back up to her room. A few seconds later you could hear the sound of a door slamming and the whole house was silent. Kendra sighed deeply and turned back to Allison and Austin who were staring at her. 

"That went well," Allison retorted sarcastically. 

***

"Wait. What do you mean she brought a guy home? You need to give me more than that." Laynee Salvatore typed back through text message causing Reagan to almost laugh at the screen. She could feel the confusion in the text from her best friend and she began typing back, feeling a slight rage inside of her, an unwarranted one at that. 

"She was in New York this week for business, or that's what she told us anyway. She never really tells us the exact reasons why she goes on these trips, I probably wouldn't understand so I just stay out of it. All I know is she comes back every time, but this time she came back with a guy." Her messages still weren't making any sense and Laynee kept sending question mark texts to show her she was still leaving out information. 

But she didn't know all the information because Reagan had been so angry she didn't stay to find out all the information. "He's staying with us for awhile, and I don't know what that means. Apparently she found him on the street." 

"Is he like a gigolo or something?" Laynee asked, Reagan snorted and almost felt offended even though she was probably kidding, sometimes Reagan still had a hard time knowing for sure due to how serious she sounded sometimes.  

"My parents are gay, you know that right? Like for each other? They're married, Laynee." Laynee always helped her feel better about situations like this even if she wasn't doing it intentionally. "I think Kendra is just doing what she always does and is trying too hard to help. She always has to try to be the one to save everyone." 

Laynee was typing for a very long time before she finally hit send on a message, one that made Reagan blink several times at it wondering if Laynee had really been the one to type out the message. All it said was, "What's so wrong with trying to save everyone? That shows she's truly a loving person who knows everyone deserves a second chance." 

Reagan had trouble giving second chances to people, that was one of her biggest downfalls and even she was capable of admitting that. When someone wronged her or even gave her the impression that they could wrong her she rarely thought they deserved more than one chance. Why wrong a person and have them expect you to forgive them? Why just not do it in the first place? 

"Because for him this isn't a second chance. This is him intruding on my family." She put the phone down and felt herself getting frustrated about the situation so she decided to just drop it. Up until Wyatt knocked on her door, making her freeze up thinking it was the house guest making an appearance to talk to her. 

"I know you're in there, I can see the light on from under the door." Wyatt said loud enough for her to hear through the walls. She quickly went to the door and ushered him in, sure Austin could hear them from wherever he was in the house, if he was still in the house. 

"Do you have to talk so loud?" She said closing the door behind her twin. She huffed and crossed her arms across her chest. "Well? Did they talk to you about him?" She asked pursing her lips. 

Wyatt was a little bit younger than Reagan, not that you could tell. He was much taller than her now and was beginning to gain muscles from all of the sports he was starting. No stranger would ever be able to tell that Wyatt was the younger twin. He sighed gently and closed his eyes trying to think of what to say. He honestly didn't have a problem with Austin staying in the house, he didn't know him at all and he was wary. Living in the supernatural world and all that he knew of it meant that it was safe to be wary of strangers. 

"They did." 

"And? You don't really seem all that fazed by it at all." She narrowed her eyes at him and hoped he was just hiding it well. 

"I mean, Rae, I'm really not. What's so wrong with them taking someone in? They took us in. We'd still be living in foster care if it wasn't for them." Wyatt said softly. He didn't want to speak too loudly, knowing Kendra's hearing she could probably hear some of this conversation and he didn't want her to feel even worse than she probably felt already. Her own daughter had rejected her decision to help someone and Wyatt was sure she was feeling pretty crappy right about now. 

"Don't do that. Please don't make me out to be ungrateful for what they did for us. I know they took us in, but we were babies. We were two years old, we weren't sixteen and more than capable of hurting us or our parents." Reagan said, a hint of sadness in her voice. She couldn't imagine losing Kendra or Allison. Even though her attitude was horrible at times and she wasn't the nicest she could be, she loved them and Wyatt more than anyone else in her life. She was protective, because she knew what had happened to her biological parents and she didn't want to see any harm come to them. 

"I'm just saying, they took us in, they helped us and I don't see what's wrong with taking him in too-" 

"They adopted us. He's sixteen, I really doubt they're going to adopt him just because they feel sorry for him." Reagan was getting angry now and she gritted her teeth. "Please just go, okay?" She tried to soften her expression for Wyatt's sake. He wasn't the one making her mad but his words weren't exactly helping. "I'm not mad at you, but please go."

She looked him dead in the eye and tried to force her Reagan smile, the one that the corners of her lips pulled up that basically said, "I just need to clear my head and be alone for awhile."

Wyatt nodded and turned around, leaving her room and shutting the door behind him. He sighed and threw his head back, wondering if anyone would ever be able to have a civil conversation with Reagan without her throwing them out. 

He bounded the stairs and saw Austin throwing a couple blankets over the small love seat, awkwardly looking around the room as if he knew he didn't belong here. 

"Do you need some help?" Wyatt asked, walking towards him as Austin's head snapped up to look at him, looking stunned and almost shocked that one of the twins was talking to him. He cleared his throat and tried to appear more calm and collected even though he felt like he was going to explode. 

He usually wasn't like this. He was always the kind of person, at least while living on the street, to appear hard and brash to the world. Not this scared little puppy who was frightened at the smallest sound, harsh look or criticism. 

"Um, sure if you'd like. Your mom put these out for me, she said I could use as many as I needed. She said there's a spare room but she gave me the option of sleeping there or here so I chose here." He shrugged and put a pillow case on one of the pillows she offered him.

"Not staying long?" Wyatt asked, genuine interest in his voice. 

Austin tilted his head to look at him and shrugged. "I don't really know. Your sister doesn't really seem to like me too much. If I'm honest I don't really feel like there's much of a welcome wagon."

Wyatt wanted to laugh at his choice of words, but he shook his head and kept his expression serious. "Reagan doesn't like anyone, don't take it too personally. I'm her brother and even she scares me sometimes. I love her to death and so do the people close to her. She hasn't always been that way. That attitude is only within the last year or so. My mom, Allison, said it's probably puberty, but all her friends are going through the same thing and it's not nearly the same." Wyatt wasn't even really sure what he was talking about, he had no idea what it was like for females to go through puberty, but something with her felt off, like there was a missing piece of the puzzle. 

"Do you not call Kendra your mom?" Austin asked, changing the subject away from Reagan, mainly because she scared him. 

"She asked us a long time ago to not call her mom, mother, etc. We don't really know why, she's never told us. Allison is mom, Kendra to us is just... Kendra. That's how it always is and always has been." 

Austin recalled when Kendra had referred to herself as their mother, wondering if that was the only word she could think of to describe herself. Clearly she was their mother, but he could sense hesitation when it came to the word, why else would she ask her own children to not call her that? 

"That's acceptable, I guess. She's just Kendra to me too, I guess. I don't really know anything about her. I don't even know if she'd be considered a friend. She's just a stranger to me like I am to her. I'm surprised she trusted me enough to bring me here, actually." He said before sitting down on the couch that was now covered in blankets. 

Wyatt's eyebrows furrowed before he took a seat next to him, feeling awkward and uncomfortable but wanting to help somehow. He was worried Reagan had put an idea into his head that he shouldn't be trusted, and Wyatt knew even less about that situation than her. 

"Reagan is a little rough around the edges- okay a lot," he corrected himself after Austin shot him a look. "But she's got good intentions, most of the time. We came from a foster family that was desperate to find us a home. Not because they didn't want us there anymore, we weren't even there a month, but because they saw how much potential we had. We were two years old and in the system it's pretty well known that everyone wants a baby. Unfortunately that's how it seems to work and it sucks. We got lucky. Mom and Kendra wanted to start a family and neither of them could have children of their own. They knew they wanted two kids at one point and they got lucky enough to get a package deal." Wyatt said with some amusement in his voice. 

Austin didn't know what to say or do, he simply sat there and listened to his story. He didn't know him well enough or anyone in this house to interrupt them to give them his two cents. Even if he felt like they were wrong, that he could be trusted, he felt he didn't have any room to speak, but rather show through his actions. 

"She's protective because of what happened to our parents. Our dad was killed and our mom was locked away for life. She doesn't want anything to happen to Kendra or Allison because she doesn't want to go back in the system and risk staying there until she's eighteen." His voice was grim and soft and when he looked at Austin he saw compassion and understanding, something that Reagan wouldn't have even given him the time to even see. "She doesn't want to go back to feeling unwanted. She's always worried about feeling replaced." 

If Austin knew anything about feeling unwanted or feeling replaced it came from his own family. His family hadn't batted an eyelash when it came to kicking him out onto the streets. It had been as easy as dropping trash on the ground and just forgetting to pick it back up. "If I stick around she'll find that we're more alike than she thinks."

He was going to prove everyone wrong. 


	4. Chapter Four

The sun was just beginning to shine through the blinds of the second-story house in the outskirts of New Orleans and Austin looked at himself in the mirror of Kendra Hart's master bathroom. It was one of the biggest bathrooms he'd ever seen and he was in awe that someone would need this much space just to pee. He looked around the whole room with his mouth agape and he scoffed. "What could you need with all of this space?" He asked out loud, jumping out of his skin when he turned around to see Kendra standing in the doorway. 

"Jesus, must you sneak up on people like that?" Austin asked shaking his head and trying to level out the beating of his heart now that it had almost popped out of his chest. 

"If I can argue, this is my house." She said with a grin and crossing her arms. "I'm not really sneaking up on anyone since you left the door open. If you need to pee we usually shut the door in this house." 

Austin rolled his eyes at her and began to leave, but she stood in the doorway blocking his way out. "What? Can't I leave now?" He asked, growing more nervous with each passing second that he stayed in this house. 

"I want to ask you a question first." 

"Can we do so not in the bathroom? This is a little weird." He glanced at the hallway behind her and she nodded, backing up and allowing him to leave. He had felt closed off and trapped, even though the room was quite large he felt like she was blocking his exit and he would never be allowed to leave. He'd been here a total of two days and even though Kendra hadn't laid a hand on him, he was nervous there was something bad waiting for him, just knowing she was something supernatural. 

It didn't help that her wife was a werewolf who scared him even more than Kendra. Her Russian accent made his hair stand on end when she spoke and made him almost cringe thinking she was going to come after him in the middle of the night just to watch him die. He shook the thoughts away and knew if they were really as bad as all the storybooks and myths had said, they would have already torn him apart. 

He'd been sneaky about staying out of their way. Leaving the house to look around the city to try and find something to do. He wanted to be in the house as little as possible until everyone had gotten used to him. 

Reagan was ignoring him and pretending he wasn't there, and Wyatt had tried to make subtle conversation with him here and there to find out what he liked to do. Austin wasn't full of words but he didn't mind hanging around with Wyatt, he actually made him feel normal in a house full of supernatural beings. 

"What are your intentions here?" Kendra asked, tilting her head to the side to get a better look at him. Her voice was calm and she was curious. "I'm just wondering if I should clean out the spare bedroom and make it yours for you to come and go." She said slowly watching his expression harden. He had been sleeping on the couch the last two nights which hadn't been that big of a deal to him, but the mattress in the pull-out bed wasn't exactly the best night's sleep he'd ever had. "If you want. We could just get a cheap bed frame and mattress and if you want to get back on your feet we could help you." 

Austin narrowed his eyes at her and bit his lip, unsure of what to think about the gesture. He thought it over but before he had time to respond she was talking again, something he noticed was a common occurrence. It was as if she could tell when the gears were turning in someone's head and they were about to argue with her. "I'm just saying, you could come and go as you please, you could stay for dinner if you wanted and keep your things there. Get a job and work towards getting a place of your own- what?" 

He hadn't realized his lips had turned into a smile, hearing the words coming out of her mouth. "You're offering me your home." He caught himself and stopped smiling before she could get her hopes up too much.

"Well, yes, I guess so. We wouldn't bug you, you don't even have to be apart of the family. Think of it like a little apartment just for you. You'd have a key to the house as long as you use it wisely and safely, you can stay here." 

Kendra and Allison had talked it over and even though they had only known each other a few days they knew they couldn't just let him go back out on the streets.

"You don't think you're being too hasty about this?" Allison had asked, genuinely curious at her wife's decision making. She didn't have a problem with Austin at all, and judging by Kendra's own feelings and obvious judgement of the boy, she didn't either. 

"I don't. He's me, don't you see? I know you didn't know me then but he's me from when I was younger. Granted, I was twenty-one when someone finally saved me but it's the same concept. The fact is, someone saved me." 

He didn't have a way to get back in if no one else was home and even though it probably looked like Kendra was feeling sorry for him, she just wanted him to have a good place to sleep for the time being. 

Kendra held out her hand and inside was a key to the front door of the house. "Use it, if you want. We'll stay away from you if that's what you need to get back on your feet. But please don't go back out there. Maybe it sounds selfish and like I'm doing it for my own personal gain, maybe I am. But I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I knew you were still struggling because I didn't try to help you." 

She had given this speech so many times already in just the last two days which was making Austin roll his eyes on the inside. He knew she meant well but he also didn't want to keep rehashing the same story all the time. He got it, she wasn't going to abandon him, but she also didn't know him. He could very well abandon her and not feel any remorse for the situation. But he wouldn't. 

He approached her and hovered his hand over hers for a couple seconds before he took the key from her palm. She sighed with relief and smiled at him, grinning from ear to ear and becoming overwhelmed with emotion. 

"I'm not making any promises, okay? I'll get a job, I'll start there for now." He said taking the key and stuffing it into his jeans pocket. He didn't have any other keys to go with it so he couldn't attach it to any keychain. But the fact that he had a key at all made him feel important again. 

His father had changed the locks on the house when he kicked him out, he couldn't even go back and get him stuff after what happened. He had lost his old house keys somewhere along the way and even then they didn't work anymore anyway. 

He stepped around Kendra after giving her a half smile and walked down the stairs of the two-story house. He bounded out the front door and as soon as it closed behind him he felt the door lock behind him as well. His head snapped up when he realized what had happened and he tilted his head to the side. The key was going to work. He had a way back inside. 

He turned on his heel and dug for the key inside of his pocket, pushing it inside the keyhole and turning it in different direction to see what clicked when it made a sound that sounded successful he turned the knob and the door opened revealing the mud room that led into the living room. 

Austin grinned to himself and let out a soft laugh, closing the door again and bounding down the porch stairs. 

***

He wasn't sure where to look first for a job. He was sixteen years old, going on seventeen, with no work experience in any field at all. He hadn't even worked at a fast food restaurant like most teenagers he knew and he was sure no place was going to take him seriously. He had no car, no experience, no identification, and most importantly unless he changed his mind, no permanent address. 

He tried to remember all of the things that had interested him when he was still in school. His mind trying to tell him that that was years and years ago even though it had only been two years. He had missed almost all of ninth grade and he would be most of the way through tenth right now. 

They had intro to machine and technology in ninth grade, something that had interested him a lot and made him want to become a mechanic one day. He hadn't made it all the way through when he was kicked out of the house and he fled town but if he could somehow turn his life around that might be something he would like to do with his life. 

"You look lost," a voice said to him as he looked down the busy streets of New Orleans, trying to decide where to go next. The voice caught his attention and he turned to face where it came from. A blonde girl who didn't look much older than him was standing there with a phone in her hand, looking to be mid-text but looking at him with narrowed his. "Problem?" She asked, her British accent thick. 

"You're right, I am lost. I'm new here, frankly I have no idea where I'm going." Austin said, amusement to his voice. The only people he'd ever heard speak in a British accent were those in movies and TV shows. 

"What are you looking for?" She asked, locking her phone and putting it into her back pocket of her pants. She had blonde hair that shone in the sunlight that amazed him that someone's hair could be so bright. He shook his head and laughed. 

"I dont really know? I'm trying to find a job but I don't really know where. I don't really have any experience in anything." He said shrugging his shoulders. He wasn't sure why he was telling a complete stranger this, but he wasn't sure why he was doing a lot of things lately. "I just moved here and seeing this city makes me want to throw up with how many options there are." 

The blonde nodded and let out a quiet laugh, "I hope my city isn't that repulsive." She shot back making him blush. 

"I didn't mean it like that. When you've been living on the streets for two years, trying to find a place to live in and trying to get a job is very overwhelming." He replied slowly, word vomit escaping his mouth since this was one of the first interactions he had with a stranger outside of Kendra's family in a couple days.

Her eyes went wide and almost gasped. "Wow, that sounds rough, I'm so sorry. Are things any better now?" She asked trying to look sympathetic. Austin had just noticed she had a bag slung over her shoulder, looking as if she was on her way to school or work.

"A little bit. I have a place to stay now which is pretty nice, the family is super nice and they're honestly just trying to do me a favor, I can tell." He replied, unsure where this conversation was going. "I'm Austin by the way, I'm originally from New York City." 

She nodded and gave him a warm smile, her accent still thick as she spoke to him gently, "I'm Eden Mikaelson."


End file.
